1. Field of the Invention
The present invention deals with the field of egg handling equipment and in particular with the field of egg orientation devices. The orientation aspect novel to the present design deals with the ordering of the pointed ends of eggs which are received with the long axes thereof already previously ordered. Namely, the present invention is adapted to receive eggs having parallel or coincident long axes wherein the direction of the pointed end of the egg is random. This randomness is brought into a known relationship by the rotation of the egg support means such that the eggs will gravitate toward the pointed end within the particular recess in which they are located. Those eggs oriented in one of the two directions will selectively be capable of being inverted by the inverter means of the present invention to orient the pointed and big ends of the eggs as desired.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior art devices include numerous patents such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,497,655; 2,704,146; 2,711,813; 2,895,589; 2,919,787; 3,075,629; 3,126,993; 3,311,216; 3,370,692; 3,463,292; 3,592,327; 3,610,400; 1,394,445; 2,141,112; 2,687,802; 2,619,216; and 2,717,729.
These patents describe a variety of different means of orienting the pointed ends of eggs including abutment edges extending above the conveyor or deflection members extending downwardly from above onto the conveyor and other similar devices. None of the devices discloses a means for inverting the egg by the exertion of a primarily tangenital force from a movable member positioned below the egg supporting means of the egg conveyor.